LETTER TO THE EDITOR: James Yeager, I Understand.

Back in the late 90s, comedian Chris Rock used to perform this routine about how even though he didn’t agree with the fact that the widely accepted belief OJ Simpson murdered his wife and her lover, he understands the Juice’s motivations if he did it. The whole thing was quite edgy back in the Clinton era and pissed a ton of people off. Well, I’m no comedian but as a life long gun owner, Second Amendment advocate and big time fan of Guns.com, I’ve got something to say about James Yeager and his “I’m going to kill people” videos. I understand.

Now before I’ve got badges banging at my door too, let me point out that it would take a team of lawyers to interpret what I just wrote as a threat and just because I understand Yeager’s motivations in making these videos, doesn’t mean I have any respect for him for making them. In my experience it’s a stupid idea to do anything while you’re mad, and the videos are embarrassing. I wish it was that easy too, that ensuring gun rights was just a matter of calling out the misguided, big mouths like Alex Jones, but the fact is we already have real obstacles and real enemies to contend with like Bloomberg, Cuomo and Feinstein. And this is why, James, I understand.

I understand because I believe your videos succeeded in at least making a good point poorly: a lot of people today, myself included, are feeling powerless and I think we feel this way because it’s rare that we see the people who we’ve trusted with power held appropriately accountable when they abuse it. Yes, Yeager abused his position as a defense instructor when he encouraged folks to take to the hills and even his Second Amendment rights when he threatened to shoot people. He should have his gun taken away until he cools off realizes what an idiot he’s being, which is what happened almost immediately. But the thing that keeps me up at night isn’t the thought that James Yeager might have a gun, it’s the fact that rarely these days do I see such swift and definitive action befall equally blatant politicians. That’s something I don’t want to understand.

To be sure, a check on tyrannical governments was what our Founding Father’s had in mind when they ensured the right to bear arms to all law-abiding citizens; the fact that governments don’t like it and people do only proves that we need it. While I wouldn’t use the word tyrannical to describe the Obama White House, I think they do a piss poor job of taking accountability for their bad decisions and Eric Holder is a living testament to this. By and large, this doesn’t make US citizens (the people to whom they are accountable) feel very confident in the state of the union and by extension, about their prospects in life.